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NBD: Fender American Pro II Precision, and a problem

EricOnTheBass

EricOnTheBass

Dec 18, 2010
701
1,629
El Paso, TX
#1
Last week I picked up a lightly used Am Pro II Precision in 3T sunburst with a maple neck, shown below in the front row of my family photo. From front to back:
  • Am Pro II Precision
  • Am Pro II Precision V
  • Sadowsky MetroExpress J/J
  • Dingwall NG3
  • Dingwall SP1
IMG_3931.jpeg


I've had an Am Pro II Precision V, just behind, for about a year, and it's a great bass. Lately I've been itching for a 4-string bass, and I wanted a maple fret board. A couple months ago I bought a Player II Precision with a maple neck, and I liked it so much I decided to upgrade. The headstock poking up in front is the Player II, which I am selling now. I'm a big fan of the Am Pro II basses. I love the tuners and bridge, the necks feel great, and they deliver the classic tone one expects from a Fender.

There is one small problem, though. The certificate of authenticity that came with this bass belongs to a different serial number (same model and production date, different color). I contacted the seller, and he thinks it was a matter of multiple basses going into one-another's cases. I looked up the serial number from the back of the headstock on Fender's website, and it matches the description. Is this something I should be concerned about? Would it be a deal-breaker for you?
 
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#6
I can see that happening. I have switch cases before for cosmetic reasons (the lining matched the bass). I can see me forgetting to switch the certs..... then selling it off without really paying attention to the S/N. So its one of the owners before you. I wouldn't worry about it as it doesn't really affect the value of your bass. Maybe post the S/N of the cert you have here and hope that you find a match.
 
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#7
EricOnTheBass said:
Last week I picked up a lightly used Am Pro II Precision in 3T sunburst with a maple neck, shown below in the front row of my family photo. From front to back:
  • Am Pro II Precision
  • Am Pro II Precision V
  • Sadowsky MetroExpress J/J
  • Dingwall NG3
  • Dingwall SP1
View attachment 7347775

I've had an Am Pro II Precision V, just behind, for about a year, and it's a great bass. Lately I've been itching for a 4-string bass, and I wanted a maple fret board. A couple months ago I bought a Player II Precision with a maple neck, and I liked it so much I decided to upgrade. The headstock poking up in front is the Player II, which I am selling now. I'm a big fan of the Am Pro II basses. I love the tuners and bridge, the necks feel great, and they deliver the classic tone one expects from a Fender.

There is one small problem, though. The certificate of authenticity that came with this bass belongs to a different serial number (same model and production date, different color). I contacted the seller, and he thinks it was a matter of multiple basses going into one-another's cases. I looked up the serial number from the back of the headstock on Fender's website, and it matches the description. Is this something I should be concerned about? Would it be a deal-breaker for you?
Click to expand...
<<
Would it be a deal-breaker for you?
>>

Not even slightly. Maybe if it was a limited edition or something. However, the American Pro II basses have that five hole neck plate that is unique to the American Pro Its and is different from 99 44/100% of the Fender basses on the planet so if it's got that, then you can be confident that it is what you think it is.
 
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#14
If the bass feels and sounds good, I couldn't possibly care less about something like that. I've probably bought 10 different Fenders over the last 15 years and never once thought to even look at the paperwork that accompanied any of them.

One (off-topic) question though - how do you feel the quality of the Sadowsky compares to your American Fenders? I've been thinking about grabbing an affordable 5-string Jazz and the Metro Express is on my list. For reference, the rest of my basses are Fender AVRIs or American Originals, a JMJ Mustang and a Custom Design Musicman Stingray 5. All nice basses - If the Sadowsky feels cheap in comparison, I don't think I would love it.
 
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#15
Non-issue to me. It’s cool to have all the case candy, and maybe I’d pay a few more dollars to get it all if one with and one without were side by side; but unless given that unlikely scenario, it wouldn’t even cross my mind.
 
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#16
lm183902 said:
If the bass feels and sounds good, I couldn't possibly care less about something like that. I've probably bought 10 different Fenders over the last 15 years and never once thought to even look at the paperwork that accompanied any of them.

One (off-topic) question though - how do you feel the quality of the Sadowsky compares to your American Fenders? I've been thinking about grabbing an affordable 5-string Jazz and the Metro Express is on my list. For reference, the rest of my basses are Fender AVRIs or American Originals, a JMJ Mustang and a Custom Design Musicman Stingray 5. All nice basses - If the Sadowsky feels cheap in comparison, I don't think I would love it.
Click to expand...
I’d say the quality of the Sadowsky is not as good as the American Fenders. The neck is a bit thicker and it’s wide enough for 19mm spacing even though the bridge has 18mm spacing. It sounds great, though. I put in the VTC preamp that they use on the Metrolines and NYC basses, which adds a passive tone control.
 
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